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Direct Instruction

-- What The Heck Is It? --

The philosophy behind the program is basically simple. We say in effect, “Kid, it doesn’t matter how miserably your environment has failed to teach you the basic concepts that the average five-year-old has long since mastered. We’re not going to fail you. We’re not going to discriminate against you, or give up on you, regardless of how unready you may be according to traditional standards. We are not going to label you with a handle, such as dyslexic or brain-damaged, and feel that we have now exonerated ourselves from the responsibility of teaching you. We’re not going to punish you by requiring you to do things you can’t do. We’re not going to talk about your difficulties to learn. Rather, we will take you where you are, and we’ll teach you. And the extent to which you fail is our failure, not yours. We will not cop out by saying, “He can’t learn.” Rather, we will say, “I failed to teach him. So I better take a good look at what I did and try to figure out a better way.”  Zig  Engelmann, founder of Direct Instruction

Helpful Hint: You will notice that the formal Direct Instruction material, available through SRA/McGraw Hill, focuses on grades K - 8. However, here's a hint for ALL teachers, all grades, all schools. Once you know how to instruct Reading Mastery you will know more about instruction, all grades and subjects, than 90% of all the teachers out there. It doesn't matter, all teachers, Kindergarten through the corporate board room, can become Master Teachers. The place to begin is by learning how to deliver Direct Instruction.

Direct Instruction (DI, spelled with a capital D and I) is a curriculum, a methodology, a technology, a delivery system that was pioneered by Siegfried Engelmann and his associates during the sixties (Who could imagine?) Sig came from the world of advertising. He wondered why the lessons of communication, deeply studied and applied in advertising, weren't used in education. The result was Direct Instruction. Since inception it has been thoroughly developed, researched, and field-tested. It has proven itself effective for all students, all grade levels, in all settings, when the goal is to create classrooms where students really learn.

Direct Instruction classrooms are recognizable by teachers, in a formal manner, showing, telling, modeling, demonstrating, leading, teaching, testing, the component parts of the skills and information that students are to learn. The emphasis is on the word "teacher," for in Direct Instruction classrooms the teacher is in charge and assumes responsibility for explicitly teaching what is to be learned. As Siegfried Engelmann has so succinctly put it, "If the student hasn't learned, the teacher hasn't taught." The teacher assumes full responsibility for academic success of the classroom: not parents, not students, not special-education teachers, not administration, not wishful thinking. Teachers are able to accept this awesome responsibility because they know that they are using tools that really work.

In a formal sense, Direct Instruction is much more than a method, however, it is also a course of study that breaks down the tasks to be taught into their many parts and teaches each part to mastery. DI materials are available through SRA/McGraw-Hill at "Other Resources / Ideas ."

At Brainsarefun the emphasis is on the efficacy of Direct Instruction. Why? Because the research shows that no other curriculum has ever proven itself to provide so much success Also incorporated into Brainsarefun are adjunct curricula, methodologies, technologies and delivery systems that emphasize knowing what you want students to learn, telling them specifically, drilling them to mastery and testing. These adjunct direct instruction components (lower case d and i) build on the strengths of Direct Instruction when Engelmann's copyrighted material is not available. (Be sure to enter Direct Instruction into your search engine for quite an extensive tour of all the pros and cons. Don't take my word for it.)

One of the biggest problems with teaching any subject, or any information, is that a substantial amount of drill is required for any new learning to be brought to mastery. Through the use of Direct Instruction it is possible for the skilled teacher to turn drill into a highly engaging activity. Direct Instruction has the following attributes.

• It is consistent. That is, it is used whenever new material is being presented, no matter the age of the student or the material being presented.
• Students are grouped for instruction according to their level of skill, rather than according to age or other factors. The advantage to this type of homogeneous skill grouping is that all the students in the group will be able to follow the material presented.
• Teachers use pre-designed scripts to teach material. This allows all teachers to take advantage of research regarding learning and retention rather than being left to their own devices.
• Student interaction is constant and intense. The scripted lessons require the entire class to continually respond verbally and in writing.
• The class does not move on until everyone in the group is able to demonstrate fluency, proficiency or mastery, depending on the goal of the lesson.

A SMART STORY ABOUT DIRECT INSTRUCTION

In 1964 the Federal Government undertook the largest and most expensive study in the history of American education. The purpose of this study, called Project Follow Through, was to research what educational programs really work. Our government wanted to know how to best teach the fundamental academic skills of reading, writing, listening, speaking, information organization and math. How do children best learn? How should teachers best teach?

Ten years and one-billion dollars later the results were clear. A curriculum and instructional methodology called "Direct Instruction," developed by Siegfried Engelmann and his associates, was the hands-down winner by every measure. The Direct Instruction model of teaching and learning delivered unequivocally higher scores than did any other model. And it does so to this very day.

Since the conclusion of Project Follow Through study after study have confirmed the same results. In short, if you want children to accelerate their learning and improve their behavior, use Direct Instruction.

Forget learning styles, various intelligences, teaching styles, the child's IQ and past history. Instead:

1. Test the child to discover his/her current skill level (not intelligence).
2. Determine how well the child can perform the fundamental academic skills and put him or her in with other children of the same skill level (not ability) during instruction. For instance, during reading instruction a good reader would move into a group which has the same high-level reading ability. During math the student moves to another appropriate level, and so on.
3. Use the Direct Instruction curriculum, exactly as it is written, for each skill group. The results will be exceptional. Virtually all children (with I.Q.'s above 80 or 90), regardless of intelligence, disability, learning style or background, will learn the fundamental academic skills, and learn them to proficiency. Not only will they read, write, listen, speak, organize information and do math, their I.Q.'s will go up, often as much as 25 percentile points. Why? Because for the first time the child has the academic skills, vocabulary and reasoning ability required to actually read and decipher the tests.

Are test scores important? It depends what you are testing. It is very important for us to know how well a child is able to perform the core academic skills: read, write, listen, speak, organize information and do math. With this information we are able to improve and be held accountable. Without this information we have no way to judge the effectiveness of our teaching or our schools. Our children must participate in effective programs if we want them to successfully continue their educations and hold careers with a future. Failure to do so relegates them to second-class citizenry. The lives of our children are at stake.

SOME ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS OF DIRECT INSTRUCTION

Direct Instruction classrooms have many common elements. With these guidelines in place, any lesson can be turned into a direct instruction lesson.

1. Teachers have stopped confusing teaching with learning.
2. Placement tests assign students to appropriate skill groups.
3. Behavior is established before academic instruction.
4. Rules for behavior are taught and drilled to mastery.
5. Teacher behavior is recognized and accepted as the critical variable to student success.
6. The curriculum is recognized as a critical variable in effective instruction and is continually evaluated against results.
7. Skills and information to be learned is broken down into its component parts and the component parts are drilled to mastery.
8. The teacher accepts responsibility for student learning.
9. Lessons are highly scripted, follow a prescribed format, and are explicit about what is to be learned.
10. Reading mastery is recognized as the core academic competency.
11. Teachers and students are required to perform quickly and accurately.
12. Errors are corrected immediately.
13. Good behavior is regularly rewarded (rarely with candy).
14. Low-performing students are never ignored and are never tricked by questions to which they haven't first been taught the answers.
15. Phonics and sound blending skills are the basis for reading.
16. Computation is the foundation of mathematics.
17. Carefully rehearsed scripts keep teachers and students on task.
18. All students are regularly tested to insure mastery of the material.
19. The class does not move on until proficiency or mastery is achieved by at least 70% of the class.
20. Mastery is evaluated by specific, regular testing.
21. Quick and easily managed interventions are readily available.
22. There is a principal who has the time and resources to devote to being the academic leader of the school.
23. Teachers receive ongoing training, in and out of their classrooms, and regular evaluations.
24. Classes are not allowed to be disrupted by students who choose inappropriate behavior.

Examples of effective direct instruction scripts may be found at

• BASIC TEACHING TECHNIQUE
• THE WELL-MANAGED CLASSROOM

If Direct Instruction is so danged good, why isn't it used more? The answer lies largely in the near-criminal behavior of most of the education schools in America. These "ivory tower" schools know next to nothing about positive discipline and how to teach basic skills. They mask their ignorance behind academic posturing filled with words like "constructivism," "learning styles," "teaching styles," and "creativity," but they never get around to teaching prospective teachers how to really succeed in a classroom of disparate students. They never get around to teaching teachers how to teach children to read, write, listen, speak, organize information or do math.With few exceptions, teacher education is gutless, unaccountable and without intellectual rigor.

Secondly, school boards and principals are rarely educators. They are, typically, operations managers in charge of building maintenance, policy enforcement and negative discipline. Since, in most cases, they have never received training about effective classroom practices they are not available for effective teacher training or supervision. Graduate schools of education, nearly without exception, teach nothing about teaching students to read, write, listen, speak, organize information or do math.

Thirdly, let's blame the good-hearted teachers. They are caught between requirements for "teacher certification," administrators, school boards, union rules, parents and ideas about "creativity in the classroom." Rather than learn a real pedagogy that would force them to stick to their guns, they bridle at the idea that someone should meddle with their right to be "creative." The problem is, much of what masks as creativity is in reality an "experiment" with another fifty-minute assignment -- often of dubious "creative" value. Schools that allow thirty "creative" teachers to go off in thirty "creative" directions find that it's virtually impossible to hold anyone accountable. It is no wonder that our children can barely read, write, listen, speak, organize information or do math. It is no wonder that the majority of time, in the majority of classrooms, is spent in ineffective classroom management, team learning, projects and little explicit instruction. Even when they do try Direct Instruction, many teachers water-down their efforts with side excursions into activities that are "more creative." While well meaning, most teachers simply have not been through the preparation required to be effective classroom mangers or instructors. After all, where could they possibly go to receive this instruction? Where is it available? Please send me even one name, of one school, of one professor.

Lay this disinformed "creativity" on top of a society that reads virtually nothing other than the sports page, and believes that completing four years of college is the same as becoming "educated," and it's easy to understand why a prescribed curriculum like Direct Instruction, that demands constant supervision, training and accountability, is largely dismissed as something that "won't work here."

Fortunately, there is some good news to throw in the face of this recrimination. Some schools of education (the University of Oregon comes to mind) are preparing students to teach Direct Instruction. SRA/McGraw-Hill is including Direct Instruction material in their catalog The Association for Direct Instruction provides many training opportunities (see Other Resources / Ideas).

Increasingly, schools are employing positive discipline programs and attending to a moral environment. In some schools, reading scores are rising. Student skills are being tested regularly. Some teachers are actually being held accountable to improving skills. A few parents are actually taking the time to read aloud to their children until they are 18, or leave home (whichever comes first). Some schools are enforcing their dress codes. Teachers are actually taking the time to interact with their students outside of class. Some students are actually being drilled to mastery on their math tables. Some parents have stopped giving their children free money (allowances) and have their children on contracts that allow them to earn for exhibiting academic behavior. I actually heard of a congressman from Colorado, Mark Udall, who stepped inside a school to learn about improving school ventilation and lighting. You have to search to find them, but the signs of hope are everywhere.

The simple fact that you are reading this is a sign of hope.

HOW TO BEGIN

Order the appropriate material from SRA/McGraw Hill. Read, practice and learn how to deliver this basic program. Once mastered, the skills learned here can be transferred to teaching all other subjects and programs, no matter what the subject or grade level being taught.

For more on Direct Instruction:

• Direct Instruction eSuite
• Biography of Siegfried "Zig" Engelmann, founder of Direct Instruction
• Association for Direct Instruction
• Martin Kozloff on Direct Instruction and etc.
• Google search on Project Follow Through
• Theory of Instruction by Siegfried Engelmann and Douglas Carnine (the only comprehensive theory of instruction with which I am familiar).  Read the review.

 For even more on Direct Instruction, and the enormous ignorance it engenders, see Wikipedia's entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_Instruction.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE: INTRODUCTION TO DIRECT INSTRUCTION © August 2001 - 2015 by Rory Donaldson. All rights reserved. In order to help reverse the tide of academic failure and optimize success, individuals may copy brainsarefun solutions for non-commercial use at no charge. Contents may not be sold or repackaged in any manner without the written permission of Rory Donaldson. Since all material is copyrighted, please ensure that this entire copyright notice and contact information continues to be attached to each article you download. Mr. Donaldson appreciates the feedback. Additional solutions may be viewed and downloaded at no charge by logging on to brainsarefun.com. New titles are being released regularly.

Suggestions and comments encouraged, email: roryd@brainsarefun.com.

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